A 62-year-old man from Merthyr Tydfil, south Wales, on income support and facing eviction from his home of 50 years, was forced repeatedly to travel by public transport to west London to find a lawyer to advise him on legal aid.

His story came to light as a coalition of groups that provide legal and social welfare advice prepared to highlight the legal aid 'desertification' of England and Wales in the run-up to the introduction of the biggest reforms of public funding in more than 50 years.

A survey of law centres throughout the country by the Law Centre Federation, undertaken for Independent Lawyer magazine, has revealed the extent of the problem. It found that:

· Seven reported that their ability to offer access to legal advice was deteriorating;

· One noted an alarming trend of violence towards staff;

· Seven identified specific gaps in provision where, for example, there was no publicly funded employment, housing or immigration advice in their area; and

· Three law centres reported problems finding help for victims of domestic violence.

'The survey is a snapshot of what's happening in the areas law centres serve,' says Steve Hynes, director of the Law Centres Federation. 'While we acknowledge that demand has always outstripped supply for civil legal services, there is a strong perception that things are getting worse. If the reforms are implemented as proposed, we will quickly see further fraying at the edges.'

This week sees the end of consultation on proposals put forward by government troubleshooter Lord Carter. These represent the biggest ever shake-up of legal aid, including exchanging hourly rates for fixed fees, and an overhaul of the funding of criminal defence firms by introducing competitive tendering.

An economic analysis of the impact of the proposals commissioned by the Law Society reckons that the proposed restructuring of criminal defence firms alone could lead to 800 legal practices going to the wall. Carter himself acknowledges that about 400 firms could go. There are huge concerns from those law firms and agencies specialising in social welfare advice (such as debt, housing and employment advice) that reforms will further erode the already flimsy network of advice.

Citizens Advice predicts that one in five of the 250 bureaux funded by the Legal Services Commission (formerly the Legal Aid Board) could be in danger if the fees were introduced as planned from April next year. 'If people are paid so little to do the cases then frankly it's just not worth their while doing the work,' says James Sandbach, senior policy officer. 'It's not practical to run a housing case on a flat rate of £90 as proposed - typically, it could take up to a day's work.' He points out that for every person advised by Citizens Advice, another is turned away.

The Law Society says that the story of the man who commuted seven hours from south Wales to London for advice is 'by no means unique'.

'There are chronic shortages of advisers doing immigration work in Yorkshire, leaving vulnerable clients without advice,' says Desmond Hudson, chief executive of the body that represents 90,000 solicitors. 'The Legal Services Commission has acknowledged there are shortages of social welfare advisers in the north east.'

The LSC strongly denies legal aid is in crisis. Crispin Passmore, head of its community legal service, reckons 94.5 per cent of people in England and Wales live within five miles of a civil legal aid supplier. 'That's comparable with the number of post offices,' he says. 'You might use a post office once a week whereas you'd see a solicitor maybe three times in your life.' He also points out that more people than ever - 635,000 - received advice under its Legal Help scheme for early advice last year, and a further 73,000 via its helpline service CLS Direct.

However, the new Law Centre Federation survey shows a system under strain. Victoria MacNally, of Brent Community Law Centre in north London, reports growing frustration directed toward its staff as people with 'urgent cases' cannot find advice. 'For the first time in our 35-year existence, a member of staff was assaulted,' she says. 'This is symptomatic of an increased climate of clients being blocked from the system and becoming increasingly desperate.'

Long road to justice

'The first thing that we would do was give him something to eat and a cup of tea because he would never have enough money for food,' recalls Russell Conway, a member of the Law Society's access to justice committee. He advised the 62-year-old man who, over the course of six months, made the seven-hour journey between his Merthyr Tydfil home and Conway's Kensington office half a dozen times.

His client had a cottage on a farm and the farmer was attempting to evict him. After six months his client was able to transfer to a solicitor in Bristol.

Crispin Passmore, head of the Community Legal Service, says: 'There are 45 specialist housing legal aid suppliers within 40 miles of Merthyr Tydfil.' So why did the man make the epic journey? 'It was an emergency situation,' says Conway. 'The landowner was threatening to demolish the cottage, his home of 50 years, and he was given very little notice.' Couldn't he have been advised by phone? 'He had nowhere to go locally for legal advice,' says Conway. 'It couldn't be done over the phone. We were dealing with plans, photographs and a huge number of documents over the years which showed boundaries.'

A dying breed?

'I have spoken to eight solicitors all over London, and even in Kent, before finding one to take my case on,' says Melanie, a 45-year-old mother living in south London. 'I jumped at the chance, not knowing whether they were good or bad.'

Melanie's relationship of eight years finished over Christmas. She now needs legal advice to sort out maintenance and contact arrangements for her six-year-old. 'I've been at my wits' end,' she says. 'The whole experience has made me sick. My experience is that legal aid lawyers are a dying breed.'

Melanie is not unusual. Family lawyers group Resolution reports that 'the few remaining legal aid firms in south London typically turn away up to 20 people a day because their books are full and there is no one else to whom they can refer cases'. Chief executive Karen MacKay adds: 'The problem is particularly acute in London and the south east, but it's spreading. Members in Kent report that clients travel up to 50 miles to find help. It's not because lawyers don't want to do the work; it's simply that it is no longer economically viable to do it.'

Says Melanie: 'I want the best for my child and I cannot help but feel that I'm not getting it because I'm not paying for it. It doesn't help that you have to ring up virtually every law firm in London before you find one willing to take your case on.'

She is also mindful that any legal aid bills could be paid back from any settlement made outside the maintenance order for her child.